Holiday Anxiety: 3 tips to help you manage stress

Holiday Anxiety: What is it?

Holiday anxiety is the feelings of fear, dread or uneasiness felt during the weeks surrounding holidays like Thanksgiving thru the New Year here in the United States. These feelings of holiday anxiety may include a physical response like tension in your neck and back, rapid heartbeat, restlessness and sweating. They may also include feelings of worry or sadness. Holiday anxiety can leave you feeling tired and even make you feel like you are going to be sick. Once it’s over you can be left with hangover like symptoms such as headache and dizziness. When these feelings become excessive, all-consuming or interfere with daily life you should seek professional help.

Holiday anxiety can leave you feeling disorganized and out of control of your emotions and surroundings. Making a solid plan for the things you do have control over removes stress around those items and allows you more time to focus on the things you enjoy about the holidays and more energy to face the unavoidable things you can't control. — Holiday anxiety can leave you feeling disorganized and out of control of your emotions and surroundings. Making a solid plan for the things you do have control over removes stress around those items and allows you more time to focus on the things you enjoy about the holidays and more energy to face the unavoidable things you can’t control.

Just because holiday anxiety can be normal in stressful situations doesn’t mean you have to just live with it. Here are 3 ways to avoid holiday anxiety or at the least minimize it.

Create a Plan to Minimize Holiday Anxiety

Planners and Checklist are your best friend this time of the year. Spend a few hours creating or customizing a planner and checklist to keep all your holiday travel, menus, décor, shopping list, gift checklist, and budget tracker in line with your holiday schedule.(I have linked a few to get you started) — Planners and Checklists are your best friend this time of the year. Spend a few hours creating or customizing a planner and checklist to keep all your holiday **travel**, **menus**, **décor**, **shopping list**, **gift checklist**, and **budget tracker** in line with your holiday schedule. (I have linked a few to get you started)

First, Understand what gives you holiday anxiety

First, understand what makes you stressed during the holidays. Whether it’s trying to book travel, create menus, organize your home décor, shop for gifts for family members or do it all with a limited budget, everyone would agree there are a lot of stress points with so many moving parts. One way to help you understand what part of the process is giving you anxiety is to take a few moments and reflect on past holiday seasons. A journal may help you with this. When you think of holidays past what things did you love? Which parts were not your favorite? Now think about the upcoming holidays. Which parts are you looking forward to? Which parts do you hope to avoid? These questions should provide some good clues as to what is giving you anxiety.

Second, Make a plan

Second, as you are thinking about the upcoming holiday write down a list of things you can plan ahead. I like this planner. Having a written plan not only gives you a checklist to avoid missing critical items, it also can reduce your holiday anxiety by providing you with a list of things you have control of and what you don’t. This is a power tool to help avoid holiday anxiety.

Third, Release your stress

Third, Plan some time for yourself during the holidays to release your stress. This can be a daily walk or a weekly massage. It can be a commitment to eating healthy most days but allowing yourself a free day on the most special day of the year.

Learn how to release stress

Spending time outside in nature has been scientifically proven to lower anxiety. Walking, hiking, or doing exercises like yoga can all help reduce holiday anxiety.

A less stressful, less anxious holiday season

Set goals for yourself, choose a reward so that it’s greater than any holiday anxiety you may face, and then, redefine what this holiday season means for you. Plan and control what you can and make a plan for how you will react (or not react) to unforeseen circumstances. Set boundaries and schedule moments for self-care where you can.

I’m praying that you and your family have a less stressful, more enjoyable holiday season!